How much time a day do you spend on cleaning?

[CandlesbyMiaBel]

When I was 25"ish" I figured out that whatever it was I was doing, wasn't cutting the mustard.  I needed to make a few life changing adjustments.

So I took stock of what time I had in a day, blocked out how much was devoted to eating, meal prep, dressing, etc... you get the idea.  There are only SOOO many hours in the day to get things done and to ensure I accomplished what was most important, I made a plan.
Here are a few tips to creating your cleaning schedule:

1. Inventory your time: Use a simple calendar.  Write down the hour you wake up and the hour you go to bed.  Block out times for meal prep, child care, work, nap times, errands... In short, determine what your daily schedule looks like so you know where you can fit in priorities like cleaning.
2. Estimate how much time you need to keep house:  A rough house cleaning estimate is 1-1.5 hours per person in the house each week.  For a family of 8 that's 8-12 hours of cleaning!!
3. Priorities what cleaning needs to be done each week.  For me, it's bathrooms and if you have boys you KNOW what I'm talking about.  Is it a MUST that all windows are cleaned each week?  Nah...  Just keep your priorities in order and go down the list.
4. Block out set cleaning times in your week long schedule: Do what works for you.  Some people devote an entire day to cleaning and do maintenance for the rest of the week.  Other people do a little every day.  What works best for you?  You might do bathrooms one day, vacuuming another, and have a day for deep cleaning.
5. Rotate your deep cleaning schedule:  Cleaning behind the fridge doesn't need to be done each week but it ought to be done.  Determine which jobs are monthly or quarterly cleaning jobs and set a time in your schedule to do monthly or quarterly deep clean jobs.  Maybe the last Saturday of the month could be set aside for monthly deep cleaning, or perhaps you can concentrate on one room to deep clean a month.  Again, this is your schedule do what works for you.
6. Having a plan is essential to getting things done. I think the most helpful thing for me was realizing how much time it takes to care for all of the needs of my family. It was so great to sit down and figure out how much "free" time I had during a day. Sometimes that free time is scheduled for housecleaning and errands, other times it is scheduled to work your kids classrooms, and sometimes it may be used for a craft or much needed nap time.  The key is keeping your Priorities Pretty Organized.  You can't know the time you're wasting or where to trim fat on a schedule unless you block it out. Don't forget to reward yourself with your own free time for a job done well! I LOVE Barnes & Noble cafe... chocolate, books, quiet... doesn't get much better than that!

[spunkymomof3]

Apr. 2, 2009 at 5:47 PM

Great Post, I am OCD about cleaning my house.  I vacuum a few times per day.  I wish I could relax but I always feel like someone is gonna stop by and I do not want them to see a mess. 

[MunchiesMom324]

Apr. 3, 2009 at 8:36 AM

I wish I could get away with "just maintenance" on a daily basis.  I have to sweep and mop the kitchen at least 2-3x/day - that's what I get for having a super messy 5 year old and a one year old. 

Take yesterday for example.  I sorta neglected the house for most of the day - spent the last 2.5 hours cleaning after the kids went to bed.  My house was SPOTLESS when DF came home and we went to bed.  I woke up this morning and my house stayed clean for about 10 min.  With the oldest getting ready for school and the baby having cereal & bananas for breakfast, my kitchen is a disaster again.  Not to mention the bathroom, you can guess why since I live in a house full of guys.  *sigh*

A mothers work is never done.  (And I am SO not looking forward to spring break when my oldest will be home ALL day with nothing to do but destroy the house.... yay...)

[busywithkids]

Apr. 3, 2009 at 12:54 PM

Add on dogs with muddy footprints (gotta love that rainy spring weather!).

 

[DevineMommie]

Apr. 3, 2009 at 1:52 PM

I agree with having Priorities and inventorying your time. I'm very OCD about my house and I literally do the same things almost everyday. But it works for me. I'm not cleaning 24/7.  But I enjoy my home being clean.  You can find a middle ground and I think in order to stay sane you have to.  

You can't let it rule your life or you'll go nuts!